Najib Likely to Announce Election Date During Umno Assembly
To be sure of winning though, Umno must reassure rural and less well off Malay voters that they can continue to depend on government assistance and positive discrimination, while recovering support from urban Malays and the Chinese and Indian minorities who favor economic and political reform.
“Sarawak assembly should be the last big one before national snap polls later in the year,” reported Asia Sentinel. This was written four months ago – back then when many people predicted that national elections will happen by the end of this year. How do Malaysians know that the General Election is approaching? The answer is simple – when the tell-tale signs go viral.
What are the tell-tale signs one might ask. When a middle-aged prime minister appears in public on a bicycle clad in a T-shirt and cycling helmet, and showing up in a concert, it is reasonable to assume that an election is in the offing.
However, the prime minister said nothing about an early poll when he donned his cycling gear at a rally in an opposition-held state of Penang last month. But any doubt that an election is likely within months disappeared with Najib’s tabling of the national Budget which appears to be aimed at shoring up the economy and Barisan Nasional’s core support in the public sector as well as the Malay voters.
Budget 2012 certainly gave the rakyat a foretaste of the goodies that we will be receiving in the run-up to the 13th general election which many believe will be held within the first quarter of next year. The stock market is not looking so bright and the looming recession seems to motivate the government to give out more good news to Malaysians.
Most of these goodies mostly impact the civil servants which make up a huge percentage of the Malaysian populace. The Government will continue to prioritize the concerns of the rakyat in its strategic initiatives in year 2012 through the implementation of its Economic Transformation Program (ETP), Government Transformation Program (GTP) and 10th Malaysia Plan (10MP).
With the strategies and programs planned under Budget 2012, the Government expects to register a 5% – 6% expansion in the country’s economy next year. As the government recognizes that the skills of the labor force, or human capital, is an important component in the production function of the economy, efforts have been made to develop it.
The Political Transformation Program (PTP) introduced recently will witness major changes in legislation to enable Malaysia to become a modern, progressive and, at the same time, a functional democracy. To complement this, the government will introduce several other transformation programs. All these will culminate into the National Transformation Policy or DTN, effective from 2011 to 2020.
State Visit
The meet-the-people programs at various states were carried out by Najib so that he could listen to the problems of the people.
“Our intention is not to hold ceremonial functions, but to listen to the people’s problems, their issues on the ground and grouses,” said Najib.
The nationwide road trip by the top two leaders of the country which began in March is expected to bring about changes which would affect the lives of the average Malaysians. Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said it is in line with Najib’s commitment for a political transformation and in line with the government’s ‘People First, Performance Now’ agenda.
“We are looking at national issues. There would be hopefully announcements at that particular time when they go down. We are looking at issue solving and announcements that affect the state.
“We will be looking specifically at issues covering the parliaments and state assemblies and the people’s representatives,” he said after a meeting of the steering committee on the tour.
Time Frame Factor
A strong win in election would give Najib, who took office in April 2009, the political mandate to break through resistance to reform from sections of the Malay majority who fear their rights are under threat. Najib has pledged pro-market economic reforms to lure lagging foreign investment and turn around his ailing coalition.
He has tried to woo the alienated ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities who abandoned the ruling coalition in the last election in 2008, leading to its unprecedented losses, but there are few signs that he can win them back.
Holding back would give him and Umno machinery time to rebuild minority support and implement reforms such as the GST, fuel subsidy cuts and further market liberalization while managing any potential backlash. Government’s popularity has improved following a series of economic and civil liberties reform initiatives, including the proposed repeal of laws allowing indefinite detention without trial. Policing in a modern and open society requires laws to be repealed, amended and a new framework formulated to strike a balance between national security and individuals’ rights. Policing philosophy introduced during the insurgency is no longer relevant.
To be sure of winning though, Umno must reassure rural and less well off Malay voters that they can continue to depend on government assistance and positive discrimination, while recovering support from urban Malays and the Chinese and Indian minorities who favor economic and political reform.
